Regional Response Team
Alaska Region Oil and Hazardous Substance Pollution Contingency Plan

10 January 2000

1) On July 13, 1999 at 5:44 p.m. Alyeska Marine Terminal reported to the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation of an overfill of tank 52-TK-54 at the power vapor recovery area. The spill was contained to a lined containment area and some of the fuel did drain into the oily water sewer system as the system was designed. The liner prevented the spill from contaminating underlying soil. Gravel and soil used as ballast to protect the liner were contaminated. The preliminary investigation determined that the spill was caused by a misalignment of system valving and failure of the tank level indicator to notify the tank level monitoring system of a high level condition in tank 52-TK-54.

2) On July 27, 1999 the Spirit of 98, a 192-foot long passenger vessel, was underway and struck an unknown object. The collision damaged the diesel generator keel cooler and created two, 2 inch cracks on the starboard side of the vessel. There was extensive flooding in the engine room and the compartment immediately forward of the engine room also flooded to a minor extent, however, the fuel tanks were not damaged. There were 120 people on board, 94 of which were passengers. Minor amounts of engine room oil discharged during the dewatering process. The vessel had an estimated 9,400 gallons of diesel fuel on board. The vessel’s response boom was deployed to pick up any sheen from the pumping. ADEC and the U.S. Coast Guard established an Incident Command Post in the case of the grounding or sinking of the vessel. There were no reports of impacted wildlife and no shoreline damage was observed.

3) On August 20^th, 1999, an explosion during filling of a Methyldiethanolamine ("MDEA") storage tank containing over 3000 gallons ruptured the tank, resulting in release to containment area and surrounding soils at the Unocal Plant in Nikiski Alaska. Also 500 pounds of ammonia gas was vented during the plant shutdown. Vacuum trucks recovered pooled product from the containment area and on ground. One worker sustained minor injuries from the explosion. MDEA is a clear, colorless liquid that is very water-soluble. It is a complex ethanol product and is used to "scrub" CO2 and other gases from the ammonia during the urea manufacturing process.

4) On Sunday, October 31, 1999 12:30 PM, a southbound freight train with five locomotives, forty-six loaded petroleum tank cars, and towing two locomotives, had a partial derailment at Alaska Railroad milepost 268.8. The two locomotives and ten, loaded tank cars at the end of the train derailed. The Alaska Railroad Corporation (ARRC) was the Responsible Party and Williams Alaska Petroleum was owner of the product in all cars. One of the cars was damaged and actively leaked app 7-8,000 gallons of product before response crews could reach the site and offload while two other overturned railcars leaked an additional 3-4,000 gallons during emergency offloading operations, officials estimate approximately 12,000 gallons of Jet A fuel spilled-. A Unified Command was established at ARRC Corporate Headquarters in Anchorage and the EPA FOSC brought in the USCG Strike Team to help establish a functional ICS since RR personnel were not proficient in ICS use. The spill occurred during fall freeze-up conditions and impacted open water in nearby creeks and beaver ponds, which then froze solid within days with the onset of sub zero temperatures. Cleanup operations continued on site for over three weeks during which time oil was recovered from open water, snow, under ice and in ice. EPA and ADEC personnel monitored on site activities and utilized a Unified Command integrated incident management team to manage the response. Up to 90% of the spilled product is thought to be recovered however additional monitoring and cleanup is planned for the spring. A web site, www.state.ak.us/local/akpages/ENV.CONSERV/dspar/perp/akrr/index.htm, was established by the Unified Command to provide the public and response community with updated situation reports, polreps, photos and incident action plans.

5) On December 22, 1999, at approximately 0200 Alaska Standard Time, a southbound freight train with 4 locomotives and 53 tank cars had a partial derailment at Alaska Railroad milepost 263.4, approximately 34 miles north of Talkeetna, AK. Three locomotives and 13 loaded tank cars derailed. Five of the tank cars leaked and four cars drained completely leaking approximately 100,000 gallons of Jet A. the derailment site was fairly flat, with no creeks running through the immediate area. The Susitna River was 1,200 feet to the west of the site. Weather conditions were extremely hazardous. Roadways in south-central Alaska were coated with ice and water and heavy snowfall in the derailment area impeded access by rail but also acted as an absorbent and helped to contain spilled fuel in the immediate area. Winds were blowing at 50-70 kts from the south with gusts to 100 kts in mountainous areas. Getting response personnel and equipment to the scene was extremely difficult and did not occur until a day and a half later. Fortunately the spill was contained in the heavy snowfall which surrounded the site. As of early January cleanup operations are continuing with RR contractors removing oil contaminated snow from the accident site and transporting it to a recycling facility where the snow will be melted and oil separated from the water. A web site, www.state.ak.us/dec/dspar/perp/akrr4/index.htm, was established by the Unified Command to provide the public and response community with updated situation reports, polreps, photos and incident action plans.

B. EXERCISES/WORKSHOPS:

1) North Slope Mutual Aid Drill (MAD): Alyeska Pipeline Service Company (APSC) hosted the August1999 Mutual Aid Drill, which is conducted annually in conjunction with North Slope Oil Producers BP and ARCO. APSC contractors and the Alaska Clean Seas Cooperative assisted in the planning and execution of this National Preparedness for Response Exercise Program (NPREP) drill. The APSC Incident Management Team (IMT) implemented their response management organization, and emphasized the incorporation of their Mutual Aid partner personnel into the APSC IMT structure. Personnel from the State of Alaska’s Joint Pipeline Office, Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and associated State of Alaska agencies, as well as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Coast Guard, and the North Slope Borough also participated in this event, and were integrated into the Unified Command structure.

2) Alyeska Pipeline Service Company (APSC) Worst Case Discharge Drill: On September 1-2, the APSC Worst Case Discharge Drill was designed to test components of APSC’s response readiness to a worst case discharge from the Valdez Marine Terminal crude oil Facilities. The APSC Incident Management Team (IMT) implemented their response management organization at the Valdez Emergency Operations Center (VEOC). Field response teams were mobilized for field operations both on land and on water. Personnel from the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and associated State of Alaska agencies, as well as the U. S. Coast Guard, U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Prince William Sound Regional Citizens Advisory Council participated in the drill as well as role players, evaluators and controllers.

3) Marine Firefighting Exercise: A Marine Firefighting Symposium and Exercise held on October 18-22 in Valdez Alaska. The symposium provided participants with an opportunity to learn from experienced marine firefighters and to implement local contingency plans by means of a major exercise in a realistic and controlled situation. The primary goal of the symposium was to deliver a top quality program meeting the National Fire Protection Association Standard NFPA-1405 (1996 edition), "Guidelines for Land-Based Firefighters Who Respond to Marine Fires." The exercise was a full-scale one-day field exercise involving a major engine room fire on a tanker.

4) Canada/U.S. North Exercises: During the week of August 23^rd, a Joint Canada/U.S. exercise was held in Tukatoyukuk, Canada. The exercise provided the opportunity for the first time deployment of U.S. oil spill response equipment to the Canadian Arctic under the Beaufort Sea Annex (CANUS North) to the Joint Marine Plan (JMP). Emergency response procedures which were discussed during CANUS North 99-1 (Anchorage, AK during 10-12 February 1999) were put to the test: logistics procedures were exercised, long-range communications equipment was tested, on-water equipment deployments were successfully conducted, and local personnel support facilities were utilized. In addition, the exercise provided an opportunity for Department of the Interior (DOI) and Environment Canada representatives to begin discussing issues associated with the development of a plan/protocol for addressing trans-boundary wildlife hazing, and capture and rehabilitation activities.

5) Canada/U.S. Dixon Entrance Exercise: The CGD SEVENTEEN District Response Advisory Team (DRAT) and the Canadian Coast Guard (CGC) conducted an international oil spill exercise in support of the CANUSDIX Annex to the Canada-United States Joint Marine Pollution Contingency Plan from September 13-17, 1999 in Prince Rupert, B.C. Participants included: The Canadian Coast Guard, Department of Interior, Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC), Alaska Department of Fish and Game, SEAPRO, Inc., Burrard Clean, harbormasters, and cleanup contractors. The tabletop exercise was designed to exercise the joint response management team. A one-day wildlife response workshop was held in conjunction with the exercise.

6) Kodiak Hazmat Exercise: The overall purpose of the project was to provide training and non-regulatory technical assistance to the community of Kodiak in order to improve the overall defensive response capabilities to a HazMat release. This included non-regulatory technical assistance visits to facilities that use ammonia; ICS training; a tabletop exercise; ammonia training; and a functional exercise. The training and technical assistance team was composed of representatives from the USCG Pacific Strike Team, the Anchorage Fire Department, Unocal, the Ammonia Group, Shannon & Wilson, and ADEC. The non-regulatory technical assistance visits were intended to identify essential areas of compliance related to the individual facilities that promote safe work environments for workers and the business. Six seafood-processing facilities were visited and afforded general safety reviews and inspections. Regarding ICS training, instructors from the USCG Pacific Strike Team and the Anchorage Fire Department presented ICS Training Modules for Incident Resource Management, Incident and Event Planning, and ICS for Executives. The tabletop exercise involved a staged, moderated scenario involving Alaska Pacific Seafoods, Kodiak Fire Department, Kodiak Island Borough, and the ADEC and the USCG. The format for the tabletop was an informal discussion with participants discussing objectives and actions taken throughout the event. Two sessions of ammonia training were held on November 3 and 5, 1999. The training included live ammonia release demonstrations. These demonstrations included an anhydrous ammonia recondensation demonstration and the use of a positive pressure ventilation (PPV) fan to clear the ammonia.

C. ARRT MEETINGS: One ARRT meeting was held during this period: September 28^th, 1999 in Kodiak, AK.

D. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE: The Science and Technology Committee met on May 3rd to discuss plan to finish the last changes to the In-Situ Burn (ISB) Guidelines Revision. The tri-chairs met again to review the status of the Guidelines and concluded that there are enough tools for the state on-scene coordinators and federal on-scene coordinators to use for response. The ‘94 Guidelines provide a pre-approval mechanism whereas the other guidelines will be the tool for decision-making for on-scene coordinators for ADEC policy. Then they will fall back to the national contingency plan for case by case.

E. WILDLIFE PROTECTION WORKING GROUP (WPWG): The Wildlife Protection Working Group (WPWG) Chairperson continued working with U.S. Coast Guard District 17, Environment Canada, and Federal and State wildlife resource agency representatives from Alaska on including wildlife protection information in the August 1999 CAN/US NORTH exercise and the September 1999 CAN/US/DIX exercise. The CAN/US NORTH exercise in Tuktoyuktuk the week of 23 August 1999, provided the opportunity for Department of the Interior (DOI) and Environment Canada representatives to begin discussing issues associated with the development of a plan/protocol for addressing trans-boundary wildlife hazing, and capture and rehabilitation activities.

DOI organized a one-day wildlife response workshop, which was held on September 15 in Prince Rupert in conjunction with a CAN/US DIX exercise. The workshop was attended by Canadian representatives (i.e., Environment Canada, Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans, B.C. Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and Burrand Clean Operations) and U.S. representatives from Alaska (i.e., U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of Transportation, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, and the Southeast Alaska Petroleum Resource Organization. The workshop focused on wildlife response activities (e.g., hazing wildlife away from oiled areas and capturing and treating oiled wildlife). Workshop participants agreed that it is important to develop a joint wildlife response plan that would be used following the activation of the CAN/US DIX annex. A joint Canada/U.S. Wildlife Response Working Group, which will be co-chaired by Environment Canada and DOI, is being be formed to develop a joint wildlife response plan. A workshop summary provided to Canadian and U.S. Coast Guard representatives for inclusion in the CAN/US DIX exercise report.

The revised Wildlife Protection Guidelines: Pribilof Islands (Pribilof Guidelines) were provided to the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation for inclusion in the of the Aleutians Subarea Contingency Plan.

F. CULTURAL RESOURCES WORKING GROUP (CRWG): The Cultural Resources Working Group (CRWG) met on July 29, 1999. The meeting focused primarily on discussion of Historic Properties Specialist criteria, the preliminary draft Alaska implementation document for the Programmatic Agreement on Protection of Historic Properties During Emergency Response under the National Contingency Plan (Programmatic Agreement), and implementation of the Programmatic Agreement for the May 1999 Goodnews Bay diesel spill. Historic Properties Specialist (HPS) criteria were approved and subsequently provided to each Federal On-Scene Coordinator (OSC) for use in identifying individuals who could serve as an HPS on behalf of a Federal OSC. The CRWG industry representative is taking the lead on coordinating with industry and Federal and State agency CRWG members, the production of a video on the protection of historic properties that could be used during spill response for educating response personnel conducting field activities. With respect to the Goodnews Bay Diesel Spill, the importance of Federal OSCs contacting an HPS as soon as possible--in accordance with the Programmatic Agreement--when a spill occurs that is not categorically excluded from the Programmatic Agreement was emphasized, in addition to the importance of utilizing qualified individuals as HPSs, rather than relying on individuals from the local area who are not familiar with the Programmatic Agreement and do not meet Programmatic Agreement HPS criteria. The U.S. Coast Guard and Environmental Protection Agency CRWG members are taking the lead in scheduling a presentation by the CRWG Chairperson on the Programmatic Agreement at an upcoming Federal OSC meeting.

A. STATE/LOCAL/INDUSTRY LIAISON:

1) On July 27-28, 1999, the Prince William Sound Advisory Council conducted a Marine Firefighting Workshop in Valdez, AK. The goal of the workshop was to develop work products on marine firefighting that will benefit the citizens and emergency responders within Prince William Sound and make them available to local organizations. Participants included: USCG, State Fire Marshall, State Fire Service Training Supervisor, Alaska Department of Emergency Services, Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, Alaska State Troopers, SeaRiver Maritime, ARCO Marine, Alaska Tanker Company, Crowley Maritime, SERVS, SWAPA, Valdez Fire Department, Prince William Sound Regional Citizens Advisory Council, Seward Volunteer Fire Department, Hilderbrand & Noll Associates, Inc, MIRT, Portland Fire Department, and Alyeska Pipeline Service Company.

1) Cordova Voss Deployment: The Seventeenth Coast Guard District Response Advisory Team (DRAT) conducted marine environmental response training for members of the Seventeenth Coast Guard District Response Group (DRG) from September 27-30, 1999 in Cordova, AK. Participants included: Marine Safety Offices Anchorage and Juneau, Air Station Kodiak, the Pacific Strike Team, Coast Guard MLCPAC IH Detachment Juneau, the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC), harbormasters, Alaska CHAUDX Corp, Alyeska, and cleanup contractors. The training objectives were to: Provide units with annual HAZWOPER instruction and train field units in the transportation and deployment of pre-positioned oil pollution response equipment. Operate CG and industry spill response equipment in training designed to simulate the protection of environmentally sensitive areas. Exercise partial mobilization of the DRG. Evaluate pre-staged response equipment for ease of transportation and deployment. Incorporate lessons learned from fiscal year 1996 DRAT training. Training consisted of 1st Responder Training and field training on the deployment of Vessel of Opportunity Skimming System (VOSS).

2) Joint Canada/U.S. Training: On September 13-17, 1999 Joint Canada/U.S. oil spill training was held in Prince Rupert, B.C. The training objectives included: Annual HAZWOPER instruction, and instruction of field units in the transportation and deployment of pre-positioned oil pollution response equipment. Operation of CG and industry spill response equipment in training designed to simulate the protection of environmentally sensitive areas. Exercise the CANUSDIX Annex of the revised Canada-U.S. Joint Marine Pollution Contingency Plan. Evaluate pre-staged response equipment for ease of transportation and deployment. Incorporate lessons learned from past training. Training included HAZWOPER at the 1st Responder Level, joint CCG and USCG response equipment deployment, including vessel of opportunity skimming systems (VOSS), drum retention system instruction, and shoreline booming operations.

2) HAZWOPER Training: The USCG 17^th District Response Advisory Team conducted HAZWOPER training for the USCG.

3) ICS Training: ICS Level 300 courses were conducted at the Kodiak Hazmat Workshop. The ICS Level 100 test is on the www.akrrt.org web site. 13 people in the 17^th Coast Guard District completed the training during this Semi-Annual period.

1) Unified Plan: Change 2 was completed and distributed. Reformatting the Unified Plan to the ICS format is underway.

2) Subarea Contingency Plans:

a. Southeast SCP: No change in status. MSO Juneau is compiling inputs for consideration as Change 1 to the plan.

b. Prince William Sound SCP: Change 1 was completed and copies were distributed.

c. Cook Inlet SCP: The Geographic Response Strategies are complete and will be incorporated in Change 1 in 2000.

d. Kodiak SCP: Geographic Response Strategies are being developed and will be incorporated in Change 1.

e. North Slope SCP: The plan has completed the public review process. The subarea committee chairpersons have reviewed the comments and replies have been sent to the commenting agencies/organizations.

f. Interior SCP: The EPA and ADEC are updating the initial draft of the Interior Subarea plan. A public review draft is being prepared for distribution and comment, with the public review period anticipated to occur in early 2000.

g. Aleutian SCP: The plan is complete and has been distributed.

h. The Bristol Bay, Western Alaska and Northwest Arctic Plans will be addressed in 2000.

3) The Federal/State Joint Planning Process:

a. On-Scene Coordinator Meeting: On November 12^th, 1999 a meeting of the Federal and State On-Scene Coordinators was held in Anchorage. These meetings are held at least semi-annually and provide a forum for the OSC’s to discuss issues from joint training to lessons learned from incidents and exercises. Agenda items from the November meeting included: 1) Incident Command System: ICS integration; during RP oversight, RP augmentation, and Government-Led Response; Standard coastal and inland ICS Spill Response Organization; Area Command and SONS ICS structure for large incidents; Joint/Integrated ICS training; Alaska ARRT adoption of a standard ICS structure and Response Management System. 2) Lessons Learned from past cases/exercises. 3) RMAC and/or other means for local/stakeholder participation. 4) RCAC spill response role and placement in the ICS structure. 5) Plan relationships (industry vs. government); Unified Plan and Subarea Plans; Geographic Response Plans versus Subarea Plans; Hazardous Substance Planning. 6) Natural Resources Damage Assessment (NRDA).

A. Paul Gates, the Department of Interior ARRT representative, retired on July 3, 1999. Pamela Bergmann is the new ARRT representative for DOI.

B. Captain Terry Walstrom, DOD Alaska Command, was relieved by Captain Gary Klink in December, 1999.

C. Captain Ron Morris, Commanding Officer of MSO Valdez and FOSC for Prince William Sound, was relieved by Commander Peyton Coleman on July 12, 1999.

D. Commander Dave Eley, Commanding Officer of MSO Juneau and FOSC for Southeast Alaska, was relieved by Commander Rob Lorigan on August 3, 1999.

1) SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE: The Committee will look into the use of dispersants as a response tool and issues regarding the Incident Management Team structure.

2) WILDLIFE PROTECTION WORKING GROUP: A Wildlife Protection Working Group meeting will be scheduled during the first half of the year 2000 to discuss updates to the Wildlife Protection Guidelines for Alaska. Work will continue on establishing a joint Canada/U.S. Wildlife Response Working Group and preparation of a preliminary draft joint wildlife response plan.

3) CULTURAL RESOURCES WORKING GROUP: The next CRWG meeting is scheduled for January 27, 2000.